Even before this season began, in early November, most assumed college basketball would be dominated by frontcourt players given the number of accomplished bigs returning to the sport. With just three games remaining in the 2023 NCAA tournament, it’s obvious that assumption was correct. The CBS Sports All-America teams reflect this.
All five players on our first team — Purdue’s Zach Edey, Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis, Alabama’s Brandon Miller, Gonzaga’s Drew Timme and Kansas’ Jalen Wilson — are 6ft 8 or taller and listed as either forwards or centers on their schools’ official websites . It’s the by-product of our constituents casting ballots regardless of position, as is normal in college basketball, though not as is done in football, baseball, and most other sports that produce All-Americans .
The frontrunners among perimeter players were Marquette’s Tyler Kolek, Kansas State’s Markquis Nowell, Penn State’s Jalen Pickett, and Houston’s Marcus Sasser, all of whom made up the second team. They were joined on the second team by UCLA forward Jaime Jaquez Jr.
The third team consists of Kansas State’s Keyontae Johnson, Iowa’s Kris Murray, UConn’s Adama Sanogo, Arizona’s Azuolas Tubelis and Miami’s Isaiah Wong. That means Kansas State, fresh from a run to the Elite Eight of the 2023 NCAA Tournament, is the only school to have produced multiple CBS Sports All-Americans. The 15 CBS Sports All-Americans come from eight different conferences, with the Big Ten (4), Big 12 (3), Big East (2), and Pac-12 (2) making up at least two each.
CBS Sports 2022-23 All America First Team
Zach Edey | Purdue | C | 7-4 | jr
Purdue’s season ended ingloriously for 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson, but Edey’s achievements and dominance in 2022-23 are undeniable. The junior center, unanimously elected to the CBS Sports All-America First Team, was the greatest force in the sport for four months. On his way to anchoring Purdue to a Big Ten title and a No. 1 seed, Edey averaged 22.3 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks while shooting 60.7% from the field. That season, he became the first player in history (since blocks became an official NCAA statistic) to have at least 750 points, 400 rebounds, 70 blocks, and 50 assists. According to Purdue, Edey’s eight 30-and-10 games are the most by a college player in the past two decades, and his double-digit scoring streak of 51 games is the longest in men’s college basketball. – Matt Norlander
Jalen Wilson | Kansas | F | 6-8 | RS jr.
All Jalen Wilson did was return from a national champions team that needed someone to make a big step forward following the impressive departures of Ochai Agbaji, Christian Braun and David McCormack. Wilson was stellar for the Big 12 champions, averaging 20.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists. Despite having one of the best starting five in the country, KU would not have been nearly the team it was had it not been for Wilson’s step-up season as a fourth-year junior. Wilson transitioned from Kansas’ X-Factor to the College Basketball All-American in 2021-22. Wilson’s rise resembles the kind of trajectory we don’t see as often today as we did over 15 seasons ago. – MN
Trayce Jackson-Davis | indiana | PF | 6-9 | sir
Heading into the Big Ten portion of the season, Edey was seen as way ahead of all the competition. And yet, at the end of the season, he narrowly parted ways with fast-closing Jackson-Davis, who had just finished a four-year college career. One of the best players in school history, Jackson-Davis led IU to a 23-12 season that ended in the second round of the NCAA tournament against No. 5 Miami. The Hoosiers earned a 4th place finish, their best since 2013. Jackson Davis had one of the best all-around stats of a Big Ten player in a long time: 20.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.9 blocks and 58.1% shooting. He leaves the IU program in much better shape than when he arrived. – MN
Brandon Miller | Alabama | SF | 6-9 | Mrs.
Alabama’s freshman forward was by far the most talented and productive freshman in college basketball this season. However, after his first few months of positive publicity for his talents on the floor, his basketball prowess was understandably and rightly overshadowed in the latter half of the season after his involvement in the death of 23-year-old Jamea Jonae Harris became national news, affecting Alabama’s reputation due to the species and the way the school handled the situation. (Miller has not been charged or suspected, but police say he supplied the gun used in Harris’ murder). On the court, Miller averaged 18.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists. – MN
Drew Timme | Gonzaga | PF | 6-10 | sir
For the third straight year, Timme is a CBS Sports First Team All-America honoree. One of the most notable collegiate careers in recent history was written by the one and only Timme, who finished his tenure with Gonzaga with 2,307 points, 896 rebounds, 325 assists, 115 blocks and 70 steals. He also made 62% of his tries in his four seasons with the Bulldogs and makes an irrefutable claim to having the greatest career in school history. This season, Timme has been at his best, posting career bests: 21.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists. Though Gonzaga was bulldozed in UConn’s Elite Eight, Timme had a career top 3 game in the Sweet 16 against UCLA: 36 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, two blocks. An American original, and he won his first-team candidacy in his last NCAA tournament. – MN
Guard Markquis Nowell made memorable appearances at the East Regional at Madison Square Garden. USATSI
CBS Sports 2022-23 All-America Second Team
Marcus Sasser | Houston | SG | 6-2 | sir
Sasser was the official drink stirrer for a Houston team that spent most of the season at the top of the AP poll. He led the Cougars, who finished program best with 33 wins, to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament while averaging 16.8 points and 3.1 assists per game. – Kyle Boone
Jaime Jaquez Jr | UCLA | G/F | 6-7 | sir
UCLA won the third-most games in a season in program history behind leading scorer and rebounder Jaime Jaquez Jr., who was the Bruins’ all-all throughout the season with 17.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. UCLA coach Mick Cronin called him “one of the best four-year-old players” in program history. – KB
Markquis Nowell | State of Kansas | PG | 5-8 | sir
Nowell’s consistent production throughout the season made him a straightforward All-American. But his star career in the NCAA tournament brought him close to First Team All-American status as he led Kansas State to a magic run in New York. Nowell averaged 23.5 points per game during March Madness, the third-highest ranking among all players who participated in at least two games, including an NCAA-record 19-assist game in the sweet 16 and a 30-point 12-assist game in the Elite Eight. – KB
Jalen Pickett | Penn State | SG | 6-4 | super sr
Penn State won the fourth-most games in program history this season behind Jalen Pickett, a former Siena star who thrived in his second season with the Nittany Lions. Pickett led the Big Ten in assists that season and also finished in the top five in points totals, averaging 6.6 assists per game and career-high points (17.7) and rebounds (7.4). – KB
Tyler Kolek | Marquette | PG | 6-3 | jr
Marquette finished the season on top-10 offense, thanks to the playmaking and scoring prowess of Big East Player of the Year Tyler Kolek. Kolek ranked second in assist rate among major conference players for the season and ranked first and fifth among Big East players in assists and steals per game. – KB
Adama Sanogo has taken UConn two wins away from its first national title since 2014. USATSI
CBS Sports 2022-23 All-America Third Team
Isaiah Wong | Miami | SG | 6-4 | jr
Wong led Miami in goals, assists and steals as the Hurricanes marched to the program’s first-ever Final Four. The three-time All-ACC performer has been a rock for the Hurricanes during a stellar year for the program. -David Cobb
Adama Sanogo | UConn | C | 6-9 | jr
Sanogo led UConn in scores and rebounds and helped provide a Final Four run. The Bruising Center took the Big Dance up a notch by averaging 20 points and 9.8 rebounds on 65.5% shooting with two double-doubles over the Huskies’ first four NCAA tournament wins. – direct current
Azuolas Tubelis | Arizona | PF | 6-11 | jr
Tubelis led the Pac-12 in scoring and won Pac-12 tournament MVP as the Wildcats captured a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. The 6-11 star finished the season averaging 19.8 points and 9.1 rebounds on 57% shooting. – direct current
Keyontae Johnson | State of Kansas | F | 6-6 | sir
Johnson capped a remarkable comeback season by helping lead Kansas State into the Elite Eight. The physical wing averaged 17.4 points and 6.8 rebounds while hitting 40.5% of his 3-pointers during the Wildcats’ first-year resurgence under Jerome Tang. – direct current
Kris Murray | Iowa | SF | 6-8 | jr
Murray averaged a whopping 20.2 points on 47.6% shooting for Iowa while more than doubling his batting average as a junior for an NCAA tournament team. Murray cemented his place as a likely first-round NBA draft pick by showing some defensive ability to match his smooth offensive play. – direct current